Jeremiah 6:16 Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.

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​The apostle Paul teaches some very harsh, politically incorrect doctrines throughout the scriptures which are difficult for some Christians to accept and obey. In fact, many Christians are willing to concede to the authority of Christ up to the point that they have to personally sacrifice something. The name for this type of disciple is a “Fair Weather Christian.” Paul’s teachings are not for the Fair Weather Christian. Paul demands that Jesus’ disciples sacrifice many things. A short list includes the following: personal relationships (1 Cor. 5), the right to speak in worship (1 Tim. 2), cursing, swearing, fornication, anger (Col. 3), money (1 Cor. 16), and the list could go on. Perhaps the most difficult of all things to give up is the use of lethal force in defense of oneself and family. Paul speaks to self-defense in 1 Cor. 7.

​Open the Bible and read 1 Cor. 7:25-33. Read the passage again, and when finished, read it a third time. Now, stop and take 5 minutes to process this new information. Five minutes have passed. Next, consider the following definition of terms within the passage. When Paul mentions the virgin, he is referring to anyone that is unmarried. In modern terms, Paul is talking about bachelors or bachelorettes. Paul is thus discussing throughout the passage the dilemma of whether a bachelor should marry or remain single. This passage may be mistaken for the first century version of “Dating for Dummies.” Contrary to this carnal and sad misconception, Paul is not trying to be a dating doctor. The apostle discusses this topic because of a daunting and terrifying time about to face the first century Christian. He calls this approaching peril “the present distress,” (vs. 26).

​The “present distress” has been misinterpreted as an impending famine and even the second advent of Christ by some. These interpretations are made by Fair Weather Christians who do not want to face the hard and clear facts of Paul’s message. The present distress was something that would require a Christian to choose between wife or Christ, personal possessions or Christ, peace and tranquility or Christ. Read again vs. 29-30, “But this I say, brethren, the time is short, so that from now on even those who have wives should be as though they had none, those who weep as though they did not weep, those who rejoice as though they did not rejoice, those who buy as though they did not possess.” Paul then makes the statement, “But I want you to be without care. He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord-how he may please the Lord,” (vs. 32).

​There would be a Roman Caesar named Nero rise to power who would put Paul and many other Christians to death, only because they bore the name of Christ. Other emperors like Domitian would arise who would follow suite with Nero. It is very likely that Paul looks forward to such disciples of Satan as the present (impending) distress that would cast the great burden of choice upon Christians. The choice: will the Christian deny the name of Christ in order to save the life of his wife or perhaps his expensive possessions, or will the Christian refuse to deny Christ and act as if he did not have a wife, own possessions, or have reason to weep? The conclusion is obvious. Paul gave no room for self-defense.

​Set aside emotions for once and seriously contemplate this emotionally disturbing command given by the apostle. Ask with sincerity, did Paul give the option of shooting the perpetrator? Think on these things while waiting on upcoming discussions regarding self-defense and the Bible.

In Daniel 5 we are introduced to an amazing account in the life of Daniel and an extremely unfortunate end to a wicked king. Belshazzar takes the vessels of the temple, which his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar had taken, and uses them in a banquet for his nobles.

While this banquet is going on, a finger of a man appeared and writes on the wall. This changed the king`s countenance and he was filled with so much fear that his thoughts troubled him and his knees knocked. Have you ever had this type of fear? There would be no rest for Belshazzar that night. He immediately brought in his astrologers, Chaldeans, and his soothsayers, but this was to no avail, because they could not interpret the writing. The King was told about Daniel and he sent for him. The king brought in Daniel who made known the writing on the wall:

Daniel 5:25-28 And this is the writing that was written, Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin. This is the interpretation of the thing: Mene; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. Tekel; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. Peres; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. I want to focus on the meaning of “TEKEL” which means “Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.”

God told Belshazzar you are weighed in the balances of my righteous judgment and have been found wanting. The word wanting means: “lacking or deficient.” We are shown clearly what Belshazzar was lacking in his life. Daniel 5:3, 4 shows that Belshazzar lacked respect for God. Daniel 5:23 says that Belshazzar did not glorify God. Daniel 5:22 shows Belshazzar lacked humility. In this article I want us to consider if we are lacking in our lives as God`s disciple. Will we be found wanting on the final day? If so what will we be found lacking or deficient of?

1) Will we be found deficient of Baptism?
Do you think baptism is necessary for salvation? Are you delaying baptism? God`s word says a lot on baptism and what the reason for it is. In Acts 2:38 we are taught that we need baptism to be forgiven of our sins. Peter says “Be baptized for the remission of sins.” We are told that Christ is the Savior of the one body (his church) Eph. 5:23. The only way to get into the body of Christ is through baptism for the remission of sins (1 Cor. 12:13). It is clearly evident that baptism is needed in order to be saved from our sins.

There is story about a girl who was considering being baptized. When her mother heard about it, she told the girl that if she would not obey the Gospel, she would get her the prom dress, she had been wanting. Sadly the girl decided to give into the mother’s offer. Shortly after that, she became deathly ill. The doctors informed her that her sickness was fatal. The mother was heartbroken. Knowing her daughter would soon die, she asked if there was anything she could do or get for her. The daughter replied, “Yes, you can you bring me that beautiful prom dress.” The mother went away confused,yet determined to fulfill her daughters last wish. When the mother returned with the dress, the daughter asked her to hold up the dress so she could see it. The daughter then said, “Mother that is the dress that cost me my soul.” How sad this story is, but without scriptural baptism we simply won`t make it to heaven.

2) Will we be found lacking zeal for God?
In the world in which we live it is easy to find ourselves getting bored with things. We throw them aside and look for something else. It is sad to see many do this with God. At first, they are thrilled with the Lord, but slowly they begin to drift. The cares and affairs of this world choke the zeal for God away; Luke 8:14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.

Peter tells us that the only way to be fruitful in the work of God is to be abounding in faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, charity. It takes a zeal for God and the gospel, to abound in our spiritual lives. To have zeal for God, is to have enthusiasm for Him.

It is my hope and prayer that no one will be weighed in the balances and found wanting on judgment day. May God grant us the ability to see and correct the areas in which we are weak!

​Perhaps sitting in a coffee shop or taking a lunch break at work, you have encountered someone who was spiritual but not religious (also known as SBNR). This is a growing ideal among Americans who claim to be Christians. In July, 2014, Mark Oppenheimer of the New York Times wrote an article about the SBNR movement. Oppenheimer cited a 2012 survey from the Pew Religion and Public Life Project. One-fifth of the survey population said they were not religiously affiliated, and 37% of that fraction stated they were SBNR. These numbers make it very likely that this author or you, the reader, will experience someone that claims to be SBNR before they die. What does the Bible say about the SBNR doctrine?

​SBNR advocates are typically disgusted with the idea of corporate church, because they had a bad experience with some church or church member. Their response is not to persevere, have longsuffering with the church, or seek unity with the church: all qualities that permeate the holy scriptures, particularly the books of Philippians and Colossians. Rather, they alienate themselves from any form of the church. However, in Colossians 1:18, Paul speaks about the church by saying, “And He (Jesus) is the head of the body, the church…” Turn back to Ephesians 5:25-27 which dictates, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.” Furthermore, vs. 23 says that Jesus is the “Savior of His body.”

Three important truths are learned from these passages, one from each passage. First, Jesus is the head of the church. He is not head of the “spiritually but not religious” people who hate the idea of a corporate body. If Jesus is the head and the church is His body, logic alone reveals that a person cannot have a relationship with His head without having a relationship with His body. The two come as a joint package. Second, Eph. 5:25-27 calls the church glorious while adding that Jesus died for the church. Did Jesus waste His blood on something useless so His acclaimed followers could be spiritual but not religious, having no identity with His blood bought institution? Third, Eph. 5:23 reveals that when Jesus comes back a second time to earth, the trip’s purpose will be to save His church, not the “spiritual” people who want nothing to do with His church. The bottom line is this: Jesus did not claim to be SBNR, so neither should we.

​There are many reasons why men and women choose to abandon their faith. One factor, a frustrated cynical view of prayer—and God, for that matter—is one of the most common reasons people leave the church. Many who made a commitment to serving the Lord and left, weren’t “sold” on prayer because they did not receive tangible results.Others assume God doesn’t answer prayer because bad things happen to them when they have done nothing wrong.

​If this is you, you are not the only one who has struggled with faith. We find the Apostle Thomas would not believe Jesus had risen until he felt all of his scars (Jn. 20:25). After feeling the scars and acknowledging he was with Christ, Jesus said in verse 29, “…Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” This is the faith Jesus desires for the Christian—a faith that doesn’t need physical evidence to accept the truth.

Still, although evidences of God are “clearly visible” in creation (Romans 1), many seek more and more physical proof of God. The Pharisees were this way, too. According to Mark 8:11-12, the Pharisees came to Jesus “seeking a sign.” They didn’t get it.

So, does prayer really work? And, if so, how? When some ask the first question, they are really asking, “Does God answer every prayer the way I want him to?” If the answer is “No,” then prayer, according to some, “does not work.” This is a carnal view of prayer. God owes you nothing. However, a spiritual view of prayer accepts when God answers, “No,” like Paul did in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9, because God’s grace is enough.

Prayer does work, when we are faithful and ask for the right things, within his will (James 4:3). Jesus said God would give what we need (Matthew 7:7-11). God doesn’t have to make your life on earth perfect, and we shouldn’t define whether or not God is faithful based on the percentage of prayers in which he answers “yes.” If he did, what would be the benefit of having no pain, struggle, or sadness in Heaven? Instead, we should focus more on our own faithfulness, than God’s faithfulness to us (James 4:8-10).

God didn’t answer, “Yes,” to his son, when Jesus prayed, “let this cup pass from me” so we wouldn’t have to endure eternal punishment. What more does he have left to prove?

Have you ever been asked “Do you take the Bible literally?” Before answering, you would be well-advised to pause and consider your reply. To the one asking the question it is a simple yes or no answer. If yes, then he will rightly point out verses that, if taken literally, have clearly dangerous results. Take Mark 9:42-48, which tells Christians if their hand or foot causes them to sin, they should “cut it off”, and if their eye were to cause them to sin, they should “pluck it out.” If you were to take this literally you would participate in self-mutilation. On the other hand, if you answer “No” then as a figurative book it is plain to see that any person’s interpretation is as good as anyone else’s. So then, how would you go about answering your friend’s questions?

​First let us realize that the answer is not a simple “yes or no” answer; because within sacred writing there are eight forms of literary speech used. Some of these by nature would seem to exclude the possibility of figurative language; these include laws and historic writing. While other methods such as poetic and dramatic (Song of Solomon) use figurative language very frequently. So how can you give a Yes or No answer? You can’t, but you can explain the use of both Literal and Figurative writing within God’s word.

​E.W. Bullinger wrote: “whenever and wherever it is possible the words of Scripture are to be understood literally.” The word of God must be translated literally if possible. If not, then move onto figurative language. When God spoke it was in real life situations not in a fairy tale, thus the Bible views itself as a non-fiction book. When the writers cite other persons in Scripture they site them as real. For example, Jesus referred to Jonah in Matthew 12:39 as a sign of His resurrection; the writer of Hebrews lists many great men and women of faith (Hebrews 11) as examples to the believer. Nowhere is the story of Moses or David seen as anything but factual, therefore one writer wrote “the Bible itself gives a witness that it should be taken at face value.” Scripture interprets scripture literally.

But as we have noted there are figurative writings in the Bible; most commonly in four forms. Metaphor, which is a comparison by direct statement, John 5:1, “I am the true vine” Jesus was not a literal vine but he could be compared to one; a Simile, which is a comparison by the use of words “like” or “as” Exodus 24:17, “The glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire…”; a Hyperbole is an exaggeration for emphasis, for example John 21:25, “And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I supposed that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” And finally used most commonly in the Old Testament is the figurative writing known as Anthropomorphism, which is attributing to God human characteristics such as in 2 Chronicles 16:9. So as we see the use of figurative language does have its place in scripture, but only when certain factors indicate that the passage in question is not meant to be interpreted literally.

​Therefore the correct answer to the question presented to you should be, If possible I take the Bible to be literal, although at times where a literal translation is not possible I then turn to the figurative sense. Because both can be found in the Bible.

​“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard lest at any time we should let them slip”(KJV). The Greek translation of the phrase “let them slip” is translated “lest we haply drift away from them”(ASV). The first word in this verse “therefore” refers to the previous chapter—Hebrews 1. In chapter 1, the writer of Hebrews points out that Jesus Christ is the greatest messenger ever to exist of the Almighty God, far greater than even the angels.

We find in John 1:1 that in the beginning, the Word was with God. Jesus is that Word according to John 1:14. The words spoken by Christ are the Word of God, holy and inspired. So the things we have heard in Hebrews 2:1 are the things which Jesus spoke to us when he came to this earth, things that are now written down and comprise what is the inspired word of God. The writer tells us we should hold to the things we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. Keep in mind that the writer is referring here to whom he wrote the letter to. In those days, many who had obeyed the gospel had begun to reject it and turn back to the old law. The writer reminds these brethren that there is no hope of salvation under the old law. Only under the New Testament which Christ died so it could be established, can anyone attain eternal salvation. The writer points this out in Hebrews 2:3 where the scripture says, “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation: which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;”What we should pay attention to here is that we cannot escape sin and the second death if we drift away from promises of Christ.

The greatest promise given to us is salvation from sin through Christ Jesus. If we neglect or let slip that great promise, we have no hope of salvation. The only thing that anchors our soul to Christ is that hope of salvation through Him. Brethren, there are too many of the Lord’s church who don’t value the importance of the hope of salvation. This is why we have members who are lax in their everyday lives and their worship to God. As long as this is the case, God’s people will continue to drift further and further away from Him. It’s like being in a boat near land. Unless a person anchors near the shore, the vessel will drift until land is no longer in sight. When this occurs, the hope of going ashore is lost. So is the case with the Christian. If we don’t anchor our soul to Christ, we will drift away! Hebrews 6:19 says, “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;” The hope spoken of here is the hope of salvation. It is the anchor of the soul. May we all understand that salvation is the only hope we have, and when we drift, our only hope will slip away!

​Phariseeism and legalism are often used interchangeably. One might be called either legalistic or a Pharisee if he or she attempts to bind any part of God’s word too forcefully. Naturally, when anyone is offended by an explanation of God’s word it is commonly deemed, “too forceful,” and the person guilty of such an interpretation is legalistic like unto a Pharisee. People who are so easily offended by simple reading of the scriptures are uneducated. They are only offended because they have not read the scriptures for themselves. They are not aware of the actual sin for which Jesus condemned the Pharisees. The Pharisees accused Jesus disciples of sin for healing on the Sabbath, picking heads of grain for food on the Sabbath, and many other areas. Simple minds would interpret Jesus’ condemnation of the Pharisees as to say these menaces were interpreting the law of God too strictly. This is anything but the truth.

​The Pharisees’ problem lay in the fact that they advocated parts of the law but did not observe those very laws for themselves. “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulder; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do to be seen by men…” Matthew 23:2-5. The Pharisees were the true definition of a hypocrite. The Pharisees’ other sin was binding laws that were never bound in God’s word to begin with. They made up new laws like Wal-Mart shoppers make up new ways to take advantage of the store’s customer service. In Luke 14, Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath. The Pharisees accused Jesus of sinning. Jesus replied in verse 5, “Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” Jesus was not claiming the Pharisees were just as guilty as He was. Jesus was not guilty. He was rather accusing the Pharisees of taking the law of God to lengths it was never intended by God. The Pharisees were making up new laws.

​The Pharisees were not little rascals. They were dirty rascals. They taught one thing and did another. They accused men of sin where there was no transgression. When a child of God reads the Bible and warns his friends of their sins, it does not automatically make him guilty of Phariseeism. Jesus also said, “Judge with righteous judgment,” Jn. 7:24. Think before you say, and don’t let false accusers make you fall away.

There are times when we are going through life, or school, or our job when get hard. We may just want to throw everything away and say forget it. Sometimes we even get mad at God for what’s going and blame him. We may possibly even say things we shouldn’t and really say and just throw ourselves a little hissy fit. People say that they prayed and God didn’t answer their prayers. God may answer your prayer but, maybe not the way you wanted it to be answered. As Christians in this day and time, we have to be the best we can possibly be and control our temper and language, and things of that nature.

The slightest thing that somebody sees us do could make them not want to be a part of the church or if they are starting to believe in it they may leave. Just remember that people are always watching no matter what we are doing or where we may be. Even if we think no one is around or watching there is always God who is looking over us! We must learn to be patient in our lives! I know that’s a lot easier said than done, believe me. I’m probably the exact opposite of patient and it’s something I have to work at every day. The bible talks about easily angered people several times in the Bible. Proverbs 29:22 says; An angry person stirs up conflict, and a hot-tempered person commits many sins. Again in Proverbs it says in chapter 22, verse 24; Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered. We need to make sure that every day we are aware of our attitudes and work on being patient every day!

How a Christian of the one true church of Christ talks in his/her day-to-day life is so very important. The importance of it cannot be overstated. The apostle Paul, of course, knew the importance of a Christian’s speech when he wrote the Ephesian letter to the congregation at Ephesus. In chapter 4, Paul discusses the importance of change in a person’s life when they obey the gospel; furthermore, Paul explains that the renewal of a person’s mind is when true change occurs. He goes on to talk about how we should put away the old man of sin. Many things are mentioned here that we are commanded to rid our cleansed souls from. Then in verse 29, Paul says, “29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” The apostle writes further in verse 31 of chapter 4 that we must put away several things in order to be the Christian we vowed to be, evil speaking being one of them. “31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:”

Now specifically we’re talking about foul language here. It’s nothing nowadays, in whatever city or town you live in, to hear people rattle off several curse words in their everyday language. People don’t even get mad anymore before they pull out the bad language and that’s disappointing. Even worse than that, there are Christians today who do the very same thing, and it’s unacceptable! The scriptures are plain in many places about the fact that we should speak to people with a sense of meekness and care for the souls of the lost such as I Peter 3:15 and James 3:13. Our speech should be seasoned with salt as Paul taught the Colossians in Colossians 4:6.

We can set ourselves apart from the world if we don’t talk like they do. We see how true this really is in Mark 14. Peter is outside the palace where Jesus is being tried the night before our Lord was crucified. A group of people recognizes Peter as a follower of Christ, and so they call him on it. Peter denies this twice, but the third time Peter denies Christ, he curses and swears, verse 71. “71 But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this man of whom ye speak.” Obviously, his accusers believed his claim after the third denial because they didn’t ask him again. Why was this? They knew that no follower of Christ world curse and swear to prove a point, or use filthy language period. It’s the same for us today. We cannot set ourselves apart from the world if we talk and act like they do. May we all watch what we say.

Alcohol is a topic that draws a lot of attention among religious thinkers. This is understandable as many social conventions revolve around beer, wine, or perhaps a martini. Some people when asked, “Do you drink?” respond, “No, I just drink wine.” Alcohol is alcohol. This discussion covers the SparkNotes a Christian should have regarding alcohol and the Bible.

​The typical promotional arguments for the acceptance of alcohol among Christians are the frequent Bible references to “wine” and the fact that Jesus turned water into wine in John 2. Both of these arguments fall short for the same reason: ignorance. Ignorance is not bliss as some would rally. Ignorance can lead to a spiritually lethal misunderstanding of God’s word. What are people missing when they make this argument? The fact that the word “wine” we are familiar with has not always referred to an alcoholic beverage is the misunderstanding. Many times in the Bible, the word “wine” refers simply to grape juice. While there is more than one Hebrew word for wine, the interpretation of the word lies in the context. Studying the context of a Bible passage often reveals if the “wine” under discussion is alcoholic or not.

​Perhaps the best, all inclusive passage a Christian could read arguing against the drinking of alcohol is found in the book 1 Peter. 1 Peter 4:3 reads, “For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries.” The opening statement by Peter makes it clear that the list provided is something a Christian should not partake in. Peter conveniently details every type of alcoholic intake one might imagine. Drunkenness- the individual so dependent on alcohol that he must have a shot of whiskey to get the morning started. Revelries- the typical party where everyone gathers to get smashed with beer. Drinking parties- an elegant affair in which people enjoy a cocktail or two while visiting. Peter could have used further descriptors, but the fact is clear from the passage. Christians should not partake in alcoholic consumption of any kind.

​The conclusion is this: be careful when attributing a Bible reference to wine with alcohol, and have 1 Peter 4:3 at hand for free thinkers who would claim the Bible condones alcohol. Read Proverbs 20:1 in closing. “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.”